Photographers Challenged to Create Something from Nothing

Photography Tips

Where do inspiration and creativity come from? Do you need a beautiful scene or subject to capture a breathtaking photograph? Canon Australia wants to remind all photographers that creativity needs nothing but you. “Blank” is one of six experiments from the Canon series “The Lab”, which challenges photographers to shift creative thinking. For this particular experiment, six photographers were invited to a studio shoot, but what they weren’t told beforehand was that the studio was completely empty, there were no props, and they weren’t allowed to take selfies. It was literally a blank canvas:

This is the fourth video of “The Lab” so far. The first three videos include one where six photographers had to shoot the exact same subject without repeating any shots, another where the photographers were told a different backstory of a man and were asked to shoot a portrait based on that story, and one where the photographers had to capture “eternal life” in a single image…without a camera.

In “Blank,” six Australian photographers, including Matt McLarty, Jacqueline Hamilton, Libby Morris and Emma Wertheim, were given only one rule—to create something from nothing.

The studio was nothing but an empty white backdrop with some red tape marking the boundaries. The photographers had to use their imaginations to find creative ways—using angles, shadows, light, whatever they had on them—to shoot the space. Here are a few of the images they came up with:

“Blank” was an interesting experiment in creativity and minimalism. It just goes to show that you can start with nothing and turn it into something—you just need a little imagination and the confidence to try something different… and maybe get naked.